


Just Hanging Around

by Vael_Walker



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Kinda, My First Fanfic, No idea what I'm doing, One Shot, Out of Character, pls help
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-09
Updated: 2017-12-09
Packaged: 2019-02-12 10:10:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12956997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vael_Walker/pseuds/Vael_Walker
Summary: In which Max chills in a hammock trying to relax on her weekend, while Victoria is herself. Feelings happen.





	Just Hanging Around

**Author's Note:**

> Couple notes. This fic functions on the idea that Victoria is a bit of a bitch because she is awful at feelings and has a thing for Max.
> 
> Italics are Max's internal thoughts except where they obviously aren't.
> 
> No idea what I'm doing, more notes at the bottom if you make it that far
> 
> Apologies for any formatting errors, point them out if you see them.
> 
> Alrighty, so yeah, go for it, read on.

“Jesus, I didn’t think she could be any more of a hipster, guess I was wrong.”

These were the words which woke Max “never Maxine” Caulfield from an accidental nap on a Saturday afternoon. It was late summer time in Arcadia Bay, that time of year when the weather is satisfyingly warm without being sweltering hot, right on the very edge of fall. Max had successfully survived another week of school, even managing to finish all her homework the previous evening, leaving two full days open for relaxation before the week reset and she has to do it all again. Having decided to capitalize on both the good weather and the free time, she had borrowed a hammock from her best friend Chloe Price earlier that morning with the intent of relaxing and reading a book Kate Marsh had loaned her. This put her in the enjoyable position of having two free days, a fresh book to dive into, and a hammock to hang out in. Despite being short on sleep thanks to her homework, it should have been a recipe for a perfect weekend. Sadly, that assumption was starting to look grim, as the aforementioned voice continued to interrupt her impromptu nap.

“Seriously Lamefield, what the hell are you actually doing?”

Rubbing sleepy eyes and attempting to sit up in the hammock, Max looked around, trying to place the voice. Looking to her left, she found it. Victoria Chase, the Queen Bee of Blackwell, stood barely an arm’s reach away, smirking down on her with an all too familiar look in her eye, a bemused look which promised mischief to come. Tall and as perfectly composed as ever, Victoria had an almost pleased look to her at the prospect of teasing the person she had deemed the “selfie hoe of Blackwell” over the fact that she had found Max snoring away in the hammock, a book forgotten on her lap. A few feet behind Victoria were her ever present shadows, Taylor and Courtney, looking amused at the situation and eagerly waiting on the fireworks which were soon to be had. After all, Max Caulfield and Victoria Chase went together about as well and gasoline and fire.

“Obviously I was enjoying a bit of an afternoon nap,” Max yawned, “but I guess that’s not going to happen now with you three around.”

The gentle rocking of her hammock combined with the calming background noises of the campus had overcome her desire to read, instead lulling her into a comfortable doze. Judging based on the number of pages she had turned, Max hadn’t actually read much before falling asleep.

“Well excuse me for interrupting your beauty sleep then. I suppose I should have considered that you need as much as you can get if you want any chance of salvaging your trashy hipster style,” came the witty response from the blonde standing over Max.

Wincing slightly at the insult and turning away from Victoria to stare up at the sky, Max ran her hands up through her hair to settle, fingers clasped together, on the back of her neck, letting out a sincerely tired sigh as she lay back down in the hammock. It seemed that today would be business as usual with Victoria, Max thought to herself.

Weighing her chances of getting back to relaxing instead of dealing with the annoyances sure to come, Max looked back to Victoria and her posse, considered if what she was about say was smart, decided it wasn’t, and then, spurred on by the brazenness which comes from not being fully awake, opened her mouth to say it anyways.

“Can we just not do this today Victoria? I’m seriously tired from staying up to write an essay for photography and I don’t have the energy to deal with you right now. I just want to relax and enjoy a free day like any reasonable person. I know you don’t like me at all, but could you save the whole “holier than thou lecture” for when I’m actually able to appreciate it?”

With her eyes closed and hoping for the best, Max wasn’t really sure what to expect. Silence was the only response she got for a moment she got. Upon opening her eyes, Max was treated to the sight of Victoria’s stony face, mouth set in a thin line, briefly searching for words. Shaking her head slightly, Victoria quickly found her voice, straightening up to her full height and adopting a condescending tone as she replied.

“As if I would ever do you such a favor Maxine.” placing extra emphasis on the Maxine in just the way that annoyed Max. “You seriously think I’m going to accommodate you just because you ‘can’t deal with me’? I feel like I should remind you again that not all of us have the luxury to still around all day and just stumble through our classes. Honestly, after that performance yesterday I’m surprised you aren’t rewriting your essay for Monday.”

Victoria’s voice switched to a mocking tone as she fully regained her composure and continued to berate Max. She spread wide her hand as she spoke to emphasize her words, pantomiming reading a newspaper headline.

“ _Max Caulfield, notorious selfie hoe of Blackwell, struggles to answer questions about the origins of selfies. Disappoints hipsters and vintage cameras everywhere_. We should see if we can get Juliet to run that one in the school paper. It would probably sell better than whatever boring shit they’re printing now.”

Now, normally this wouldn’t bother Max, she would bite her tongue, roll her eyes behind Victoria’s back and that would be that, business as usual. Normally. This time though, fresh from sleep and lacking her normal inhibitions, Max was seriously annoyed. What had prospectively been an enjoyable weekend was quickly turning sour. She had been enjoying her lazy day regardless of the deviation from her original plan and Victoria and co. just had to go and screw with the mood with their normal behavior. It seriously wouldn’t kill them to be nice for a day, especially a Saturday, especially a nice Saturday. Contemplating this, a sound cut through Max’s train of thought, bringing her back to reality. It was the sound of amused laughter coming from Taylor and Courtney, standing behind Victoria and not even bothering to attempt to hide their entertainment from Victoria’s treatment of Max. This reaction proved to be the final straw for girl in the hammock.

Standing up and glaring at the trio, Max just had time to realize what an awful idea this was before her emotions took over. Speaking to Victoria with that certain mix of ire and sarcasm which only comes from being rudely woken up, she ranted.

“Stop. Just stop right there Chase! What gives you the right to screw with me like this? It’s a free fucking campus and there are plenty of other places where you can go do your “bitch of Blackwell” routine. You seriously go out of your way just to torment me. I don’t even cause you trouble. Hell, I go out of my way try not to piss you off. The least you could do is show me the same courtesy but you don’t even do that.”

Her emotional outburst shocked everyone present, including Max. Silence reigned supreme over her audience as she took a deep breath and prepared to continue. Courtney and Taylor stood blank faced with surprise, while Victoria stuttered and tried to formulate a response. She opened her mouth to speak only to be interrupted hotly by Max before she got her first word out.

“I’m not finished yet Victoria!” Sighing and seeming to deflate a little, her initial energy and passion spent, Max continued. “I mean it, I seriously try so hard not get in your way, I admire your work and style but you’re such a bitch sometimes. I get that we’re not friends but seriously. Look at you now, the queen of Blackwell, stuttering like some playground bully when someone doesn’t cave to your wishes. That’s honest to god who you remind me of sometimes. You know, the supposedly cool kid who would throw rocks at whoever they had a crush on because they didn’t know how to not be a prick. Its super childish and I wish we could get over it. It’s exhausting to deal with.”

Having run out of both nerves and energy while talking, Max sat back down the hammock, mentally kicking herself and counting down the seconds to the inevitable firestorm that was coming. Grimacing to herself she tried to recover her thoughts from her emotional tirade and figure out what to do.

_Dear Kate, sorry I won’t be able to return your book because I got in a fight with Victoria Chase and it got ugly. On a totally related note, any chance I could convince you to write my obituary and put in a good word for me with God?_

After a few moments of tension filled silence, Max looked up towards Victoria and her followers, half expecting to see them brandishing torches and pitchforks for the riot which was coming, metaphorically of course. The scene she saw however was somehow more shocking than if there had been actual torches and pitchforks present. Instead of looking like an angry mob, Courtney and Taylor were nervously glancing between each other and seemed surprisingly worries, their humor completely gone. Bringing what was left of her attention to bear on Victoria, Max was treated to a sight she would never forget. Victoria, The Victoria Chase, was standing half turned away from Max, face frozen and emotionless the beginnings of a blush growing on her on her cheeks. Opening and closing her mouth several times Victoria seemed close to speaking several times but never quite managed to deliver the cutting remarks Max had been expecting.

“What the fuuu….” Thought Max to herself, “she can’t just be reacting that poorly to what I said. I wasn’t even awfully mean, all I did was call her a bitch and imply that she was acting like…. a kid… a kid with a crush… but that would mean a crush on—“

Cocking her head to the side, Max looked more closely at blonde in front of her, taking time to notice the way Victoria’s blush was growing and how she was clearly looking anywhere other than at Max. If that wasn’t suspicious enough, Taylor had stepped forwards to place a hand on Victoria’s shoulder while Courtney was currently making shushing motions towards Max and silently imploring her to shut up.

Putting the pieces together, Max was struck with a sudden realization. Choosing her words carefully and speaking softer than before, Max began.

“Victoria,” prompting Courtney to gesture more aggressively in the back ground, “Was I a little too right? Are you seriously being a snotty to me because of some crush?”

“No. Absolutely not Caulfield.”

“Are you sure? You’re looking a little red there and I’m pretty sure you should have called me Lamefield right there….”

“Which part of ‘hell no’ don’t you understand hipster?”

“All of it apparently…”

The corners of Max’s lips twitched upwards, spreading into a small smile as she watched her rival, meeting her eye to eye when Victoria turned to her. Victoria’s face was flushed, the blush coloring her cheeks was a rosy shade of pink, serving only to highlight her discomfort. Still looking uneasy, Victoria glanced down after a moment of eye contact, mumbling words which suspiciously sounded like a confirmation of Max’s guess.

“What was that Victoria?”

“You heard me.”

“Not when you mumble like that.”

“A Chase never mumbles, they speak clearly at all times.”

“Apparently this one does.”

“Piss off Maxine.”

Chuckling to herself at the unexpected turn of events, Max looked past Victoria to check on Taylor and Courtney. The former has seemingly given up on comforting Victoria and is immersed in her phone, fidgeting with the device and no doubt debating if she should call for back up. Courtney on the other hand had been reduced to sitting on the ground several feet away, nervously biting her lip and looking like was considering running for her life. It would seem the pair of girls either knew or had guessed Victoria’s feelings and hadn’t been prepared to deal with their reveal in this way. The entire situation had been entirely unforeseen on all accounts. Of the four, Max seemed to be handling it the best, although this could be attributed to the fact she had just woken up from her unplanned nap.

_I just wanted an afternoon to relax, is that really too much to ask for?_

“Listen Victoria,” Max began, speaking in an earnest a calm manner, “like I said earlier, I don’t have the energy to spare right now. I hadn’t planned on falling asleep I apparently needed it and I kinda want to get back to it. Just enjoy the nice day you know? You’re welcome to either join me or leave me in peace. It’s up to you.”

Stumbling slightly over the last part of her impulsive offer, Max waited with baited breath. If she thought she got surprising reactions earlier, then these ones were even more so. Victoria had frozen in place, fixing Max with the most intense look she had ever given the hipster. Taylor looked up from her phone and released a sigh while rubbing her temples. She calmly strode over to Courtney, pulled her to her feet and drug her away, all the while grumbling about the stupidity of mixing fire and gasoline. After they had left, Max turned her attention to the girl who had been left behind who was still in the middle of staring her down. She released what felt like the hundredth sigh of the day and considered her options.

Max came to a decision which surprised even herself.

_I really hope this doesn’t backfire on me. Well, any more than it already has I suppose._

“I take it since you’re still standing there you’re not opposed to the idea then? It would be tight but I can make room.”

This seemed to shake Victoria out of her contemplations. However, instead of getting angry as was her usual behavior, she hesitated for a moment to gather her thoughts. Grimacing with distaste at the words, she began to speak in a much more controlled manner than Max had been expecting.

“Maxine, I – “

“Max. Never Maxine.’

Max’s usual interruption caused Victoria to smile briefly, a kinder demeanor showing on her face for a moment.

“Max then.” Victoria paused, drawing a long breath and speaking in the detached manner she normally answered teachers with, very clearly distancing herself from the situation. “I absolutely hate being put on the spot like this. It is possible, and god it’s a very small ‘possible’ mind you, that your accusations might have an extremely small grain of truth to them. But I won’t apologize for my behavior, I have a reputation to uphold here after all.” Nodding briefly to herself at the justification she went on. “I shall leave you to your book and stop bothering you then.”

As she turned to leave, Max realized that the Victoria about to walk away from her had taken huge a leap of faith. Despite how cool and detatched she had sounded, Victoria had decided to leave Max alone after admitting Max was right. That version of Victoria wasn’t one she wanted to ignore.

“Well, I’ve already had two terrible ideas, might as well go for three. Everything comes in threes right?”

Reaching her hand out before the blonde got too far, Max grabbed the back of Victoria’s sweater and tugged, pulling the taller girl down to sit in the hammock beside her.

“I swear to god if you stretched my sweater I’ll—“

“Wowsers, you just don’t stop huh? Just lie down and relax, I’d bet neither of us want to talk about this right now and I’m tired so…..”

“So we just hang out in a dorky hammock pretending to like each other?”

Max giggled sleepily as she laid down completely, forcing Victoria to do the same.

“Heh. Hanging. Get it? Cuz it’s a hammock…. I swear that was a good one. And yeah, at least pretend for the rest of the day and we can deal with the feelings side later.”

Max closed her eyes and very pointedly went silent, again waiting for some scathing comment. Instead, all she heard where several muttered comments about her lack of respect for clothing and how the hammock really wasn’t big enough for two without them squishing together. Which is exactly what ended up happening.

_Well, I guess that could have went worse. Hopefully the rest of the weekend will be drama free. Guess I’ll have to see._

**Author's Note:**

> So as I said, I'm totally new to writing stories and I have no idea how this work is. I have read and reread it so many times I'm not sure if I'm happy with it but I feel like I need other eyes on it before I completely convince myself it's trash.
> 
> They might be a bit out of character (Max being too ballsy and Victoria just not quite being herself) but this is honest to god my first fic and lets be real, fics are a hell of a lot different than college essays. 
> 
>  
> 
> If you have and sort of constructive criticisms or tips on how to polish this or write characters better,(grammar, punctuation, tense use, setting the scene, dialog, whatever.) I would love to hear them regardless of what they address. Seriously, pls help lol.
> 
>  
> 
> If y'all stuck around long enough to read these, thank you ever so much, I really appreciate it.


End file.
